Monthly Archives: June 2017

Designated Survivor Leadership

21 Wednesday Jun 2017

Posted by in Actions, Attitude, Humility, Integrity, Leader, Leadership, Purpose, Servant

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“When you have to make a hard decision; flip a coin. Why? Because when the coin is in the air, you suddenly know what you are hoping for.” – Unknown

First of all, let me say that I am a big fan of ABC’s show Designated Survivor starring Kiefer Sutherland. Designated Survivor is what you should be watching if you are looking for a show that embodies almost every different style of leadership.  It offers the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of leadership.

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While watching one evening, a segment really caught my attention. In episode 4, of season 1, the Press Secretary, Seth Wright, played by Kal Penn, made this statement in a speech:

“We live in a time in which we are called to serve in ways we did not anticipate.  None of us are perfect but we do our best because this house is worthy of our best.  We trust our instincts as we fight our daily fights.  Some we will win, some we will not, and some we will know only in time.  But we leave each night, hopeful that our daily sacrifices have been worth it and our instincts have not lead us astray and that our best has been good enough.”

As I listened and then hit the rewind button, I thought to myself… WOW! That’s exactly what we should do as leaders.

In the speech, the “house” refers the White House, but what if we change the wording to where we are? What is our “house”? We could change “house” to our own house, our family, our teams, our schools or anything else that is worth fighting for.

As we continue to lead, let’s fight for what is right and be true to our values. I cannot think of two better leadership concepts that will help you throughout the rest of your life.

So… What type of leader are you of your “house”?  Who is better to decide, you the leader or the people who follow you?  Would you say there would be different viewpoint from each?

Most of the time we have a much higher, biased opinion of ourselves then what is really true. Our followers do not always determine our leadership quality but it can be a pretty good sign of reality.

Be the leader people want to follow for the right reasons.  When it becomes more about you then them, we really are not leading anymore.  As you watch the role of Kiefer Sutherland as President Tom Kirkman, I believe you will find servant leadership at it’s best.

Be a Designated Survivor Leader.  Sometimes you will be the only one left who is holding on to what is right and true. Most of all, lead and fight for what is right. 

Remember…  THINK LEADERSHIP

©2017  J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/thebookchamber
Subscribe via email to my blog at the top of the page.

Don’t Linger, Move Forward

15 Thursday Jun 2017

Posted by in Attitude, Heart, Perseverance

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“Be the example…not the shadow” – Deborah Thomas

Ok… I know you will roll your eyes as you read this question:  How many of us are faced with daily challenges?  And… How do you handle them?

And you know what?

“Challenges could care less if we are ready to face them or not but face them we will. ” 

Everyone I know or have read about faces challenges. It is one of the constants in life. Each challenge is a story to tell within itself.  A life lesson or a nugget to go on one might say.  The outcomes of our challenges may even be a template for future decisions. We all have had our share of good and bad outcomes.

How we handle challenges will show a lot about our leadership character.  And… Believe it or not, others are watching. We all have a choice of how we will move forward. But…

“When we decide how we are going to handle challenges, we cannot make spur of the moment decisions.”

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One of the best things is to have people on your side who will help you.  This is key to overcoming our challenges.  ‘You have to have people who have your heart and care without any strings attached.” I hope you have people like this in your life.  It is comforting and priceless.

“To have a friend who knows your heart is the best friend you can have.”

As you think about the challenges we face, take a moment and breathe a breath of fresh air.

We can either linger in the challenge moment and let it consume us or we can move forward.

In reference to the quote above by Deborah Thomas, if we linger, we stay in the shadow.  If we move forward, we are the example.

Remember…  THINK LEADERSHIP

© 2017  J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/thebookchamber

Subscribe via email to my blog at the top of the page.

Crystal Clear, Grime Free Clarity Leadership

13 Tuesday Jun 2017

Posted by in Clarity

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“Leadership is embedding the capacity for greatness in the people and practices of an organization.” – David Marquet

Through the lens

Crystal Clear, Grime Free Clarity

 

How many of you remember the movie “A Few Good Men” where Tom Cruise has Jack Nicholson on the stand and asks him if his orders are always clear?  And then, Jack Nicholson ask Tom Cruise if what he said was clear and Cruise responds “crystal”…

How many of us view our leadership with clarity that is “crystal clear”?  Do our teams view our leadership the same way? Sometimes, our vision is hindered by smog, fog, being near or far-sighted, crowds, etc.  I’m sure you can add to the list.

Too many times we are not focused and the haze around us just makes it hard to see.

So, what do we do to make sure our leadership has crystal clear clarity with no grime?

Here are a few thoughts (in no particular order)….

  • Eliminate the drama
  • Value your team
  • Listen
  • Shared goals and vision
  • Communication on the front end (no surprises)
  • Have a servant attitude
  • Know your surroundings
  • ?
If we cannot see with clarity, how are the members of our teams going to see with clarity? That is the key question we must have answers to as leaders.
I guess the best thing a leader can do is to carry around a bottle of Windex… Many times the leadership is clear, but it will have to be cleaned on a regular basis. That is our job as leaders. We have to clean and keep clean our leadership. I believe it is the only way everyone will have a crystal clear idea.
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Remember…  THINK LEADERSHIP

© 2017  J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/thebookchamber

Subscribe via email to my blog at the top of the page.

 

Mirror Mirror on the Wall, Do I See Any Leadership At All?

05 Monday Jun 2017

Posted by in Uncategorized

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“Truth sounds like hate to those who hate truth.” – Unknown

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Why do we look in a mirror?  To see what we look like.

When we look in the mirror, all we see is ourselves and I know this sounds corny but it is the only place we truly see ourselves.  The mirror is where we come face to face with the self-reality of our leadership.

Our leadership “check” is the mirror.  It is the only place we can have an honest evaluation about and with ourselves.  And it is very hard.  Why do you think this is?

Because we are the only ones that know the truth. We can hide, disguise, suppress, etc..

When we are faced with having a leadership self-check, does it help?  Why or why not?

If yes, then we have become broken, humble and our EGO has not gotten in the way.

If no, then we believe we are better than we really are.

Here a few “we will” leadership check thoughts as we look in the mirror…

  1. We will compare ourselves with those who we are better than.  This way we will make sure we always look good.
  2. We will never compare ourselves with those who are better than us.  Why? Because we have no desire to look inferior.
  3. We will always seek out those who think like us.  This will give us the answers we want to hear.
  4. We will rarely seek input from those who do not think like us.  Why?  See #3.
  5. In our own minds, we can justify anything to our benefit.

Looking in the leadership mirror is hard.  Accepting what we see in the reflection is even harder.

Let’s make sure that the leadership reflection we see is the leadership others want us to have.

Remember…  THINK LEADERSHIP

© 2017  J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/thebookchamber

Subscribe via email to my blog at the top of the page.